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Alex Ovechkin heads in right direction for Caps

Published on NewsOK
Modified: April 30, 2013 at 5:17 pm •
Published: April 30, 2013

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ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — At first, Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin was not a huge fan of first-time NHL head coach Adam Oates' attempt to move him from left wing to right wing.

Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin, of Russia, skates during NHL hockey practice at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington, Va., Tuesday, April 30, 2013. By scoring 22 times in the last 21 games, Ovechkin claimed his third goal-scoring title and led the Capitals to the Southeast Division title. Yes, Alexander the Great is back at his best and will face the New York Rangers in the playoffs. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

"We tried it a couple of times," Ovechkin said, reflecting on the start of the season as he prepares to face the visiting New York Rangers in Game 1 of their playoff series Thursday night. "I didn't feel comfortable there."

So Oates temporarily relented and switched Ovechkin back to the left side for a handful of games, putting the two-time league MVP on a line with little-used players, as if to send the message: Are you sure this is what you want?

That didn't last long. Ovechkin agreed to give Oates' experiment another try.

"I'm glad I did," Ovechkin said. "And I'm glad it worked."

Certainly can't argue with the results. By scoring 22 times in the last 21 regular-season games, Ovechkin ended up leading the league with 32 goals in a lockout-shortened schedule — his third Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, but first since 2009. He also helped push the Capitals to the Southeast Division title even though they won only two of their first 11 games.

"Right now," Ovechkin said, "I feel probably the same way I feel on the left side."

Yes, after two seasons in which he was no longer the score-at-will superstar he had been earlier in his career, Alexander the Great is back.

A headache for opponents to deal with, and one of the main reasons the Capitals feel they've got a chance to win any game.

"He's got that swagger again, that swagger where you're sitting on the bench, and he's got the puck, and everyone's standing up, because he might score. He might score every time he gets the puck. You never know," teammate Matt Hendricks said. "It's great to see him playing with that confidence again."

After averaging more than 50 goals over his first five NHL seasons, with a high of 65, Ovechkin finished with only 32 two years ago, then 38 last year. One way to look at his resurgence: The 27-year-old Russian scored the same number of goals in 48 games this season as he compiled in 79 games in 2010-11.

Watching from afar as an assistant coach with the New Jersey Devils the past two years, Oates — a former Capitals forward who is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame — thought he detected a reason for the scoring decline.

Put simply, Oates said, Ovechkin "didn't get the puck enough." Oates thought changing the side of the ice Ovechkin spends much of his time on could be a way to get more touches.

Oates pitched the idea to Capitals general manager George McPhee during a job interview to replace Dale Hunter as Washington's coach.